Recruiter Hot Seat: All 4 Games

Current job openings:Company: Channel 4/All 4 GamesCountry: Glasgow/ScotlandHiring: Product Manager; responsible for games on an ongoing basis, extrapolating learnings from player behaviour data back to the dev teams and ensuring Live Ops and community management is optimising games retention and monetisation.Where to apply:jobs.channel4.com

What differentiates your company from others?

Channel 4 was first created to stimulate a UK TV production industry by sourcing its content externally, rather than creating shows in-house.

We apply that same ideology to games too, so we’re not looking to develop our own games, but to find games that indie developers would ideally have wanted to self-publish, but now realise they need some help in reaching an audience – which is where Channel 4’s reach comes into play.

How many staff are you looking to take on?

We’ve currently got a team of four that collectively have clocked up 60 years in the games industry, and we’re looking for one more to complete the core team in the first instance.

In 2016 we expect to be ramping up further, but the precise numbers and roles we’ll determine at the time, based on what’ll work best for the industry.

What perks are available to working at your company?

Channel 4 offers all the standard perks, and more, but what people seem to value most is job security and getting to work with similarly committed, passionate and smart folk.

What should aspiring games industry professionals do with their CV to get an interview?

Getting the first job in games is always the hardest, but by building a portfolio and differentiating your CV from the masses you’ll have the best chances.

Who is the best interviewee you have ever had and how did they impress you?

The best interviewees don’t do anything gimmicky, but have already been selective about the job being a good match for them, and they just talk clearly and honestly.

And who was the worst? As I walked an interviewee into the meeting room, he mentioned our company name at the time and commented: “It’s a bit of a shit name really”.

He might’ve been right, but the lack of judgement and self-awareness lost him the job before he’d even sat down.

What advice would you give to help ensure a successful interview at your company?

Don’t try to bullshit. We’re looking for genuinely passionate people – so if you’re not passionate about games or your preferred discipline, then you’re probably not going to be the right fit for us.

If you have recruited internationally, what is the process like?

So far the team’s all come from within the UK.

Why should developers work with you when going indie and self-publishing have become so much more accessible?

The accessibility of self-publishing is both a blessing and a curse – it’s great that it’s become so easy for everyone, but the result is it being so hard to stand out.

Discoverability is the single biggest issue we face in the digital age – that’s why we’re offering developers the chance to use our dedicated games team’s expertise and Channel 4’s reach to find an engaged audience that’ll love their game.